Venture Day Minsk 2018

Early Bird Price — 40 BYN

About Venture Day Minsk

The largest startup conference held in English only in Belarus that gathers 500+ startups, investors, corporates IT-professionals from Eastern Europe

First held in 2015 in co-operation with IE Business School, Madrid Venture Day Minsk has grown into an international startup conference organized annually by Belbiz Group, Imaguru Startup Hub. The conference gathers 500+ startups, investors, corporates IT-professionals from Eastern Europe and extended networking opportunities and share first-hand experience from the world tech industry experts.

Speakers 2018

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Peter Vesterbacka

Cofounder at Lightneer

Peter Vesterbacka

Cofounder at Lightneer

Peter Vesterbacka, cofounder at Lightneer, and ex-Rovio marketing guru. Peter Vesterbacka is the Mighty Eagle of Angry Birds, the founder of Slush and MobileMonday.

Peter Vesterbacka

Cofounder at Lightneer

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Jamy T. Nigri

Cofounder BDXcoin.com

Jamy T. Nigri

Cofounder BDXcoin.com

Cofounder BDXcoin.com. BDXcoin.com is a platform run by one of the Europe’s leading brokers BDSwiss with a kind of gamification which has everything to conduct pre ICO and ICO.

Jamy T. Nigri

Cofounder BDXcoin.com

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Can Saracoglu

Сofounder BDXcoin.com.

Can Saracoglu

Сofounder BDXcoin.com.

BDXcoin.com is a platform run by one of the Europe’s leading brokers BDSwiss with a kind of gamification which has everything to conduct pre ICO and ICO.

Can Saracoglu

Сofounder BDXcoin.com.

Speakers 2015-2017

Robert Riley

U.S. Charge d'affaires to Belarus

Robert Riley

U.S. Charge d'affaires to Belarus

Robert Riley

U.S. Charge d'affaires to Belarus

Kai Mykkänen

Minister for Foreign Trade and Development of Finland

Kai Mykkänen

Minister for Foreign Trade and Development of Finland

Kai Mykkänen

Minister for Foreign Trade and Development of Finland

Tania Marinich

Cofounder & CEO @ BELBIZ Group of Companies

Tania Marinich

Cofounder & CEO @ BELBIZ Group of Companies

Prior to Belbiz Tania spent 8 years with the International Finance Corporation leading various projects for private sector development within IFC advisory activities. Tania received her International Executive MBA degree from IE Business School in Madrid

Tania Marinich

Cofounder & CEO @ BELBIZ Group of Companies

Patrick Halford

Nordic Robotics and Drone Ecosystem Director @ IBM

Patrick Halford

Nordic Robotics and Drone Ecosystem Director @ IBM

Having worked at IBM for over 15 years, Patrick Halford is a frequent speaker widely experienced in the ecosystems approach of disruptive technologies and in the business applications of these technologies. With a special focus on robotics, drone technology and healthcare ecosystem advancements, Patrick is a true tech advocate, helping the world solve complex challenges across industries. A guy literally bringing the future to our doorsteps.

In his talk Patrick will help you picture the world we’re moving towards thanks to all new technologies out there, and teach you how global ecosystems can come in handy. He will also let you in on some concrete tools he uses in actual client work.

Patrick Halford

Nordic Robotics and Drone Ecosystem Director @ IBM

Eugene Nevgen

CEO & Co-Founder @ MSQRD

Eugene Nevgen

CEO & Co-Founder @ MSQRD

Eugene Nevgen

CEO & Co-Founder @ MSQRD

Mike Butcher

Editor At Large @ TechCrunch

Mike Butcher

Editor At Large @ TechCrunch

Mike Butcher is Editor At Large of TechCrunch, the biggest breaking news site about the world’s hottest tech companies. Mike has been named one of the most influential people in technology in surveys by The Daily Telegraph, GfK NOP, The Independent, Wired

Mike Butcher

Editor At Large @ TechCrunch

“I’m excited to be at #VentureDayMinsk in, yeah, Minsk! A tonne of talent here, (& the home of MSQRD, acquired by Facebook)”

Arkadiy Dobkin

Founder & CEO @ EPAM

Arkadiy Dobkin

Founder & CEO @ EPAM

After working for several years as a programmer he started his first private software company. In 1991, after immigrating to the United States, he held technical and leadership positions in big companies before focusing on developing EPAM.

Arkadiy Dobkin

Founder & CEO @ EPAM

Ken Singer

Head of entrepreneurship and tech center @ UC Berkeley

Ken Singer

Head of entrepreneurship and tech center @ UC Berkeley

Ken is a serial entrepreneur, technology executive, university lecturer, and director/advisor to numerous startups in the US and Europe. A 14-year veteran of the mobile industry, Ken created solutions spanning all forms of mobile technology and has founded or co-founded five companies in the mobility space. Ken was the co-founder and CEO of AppCentral, the first enterprise app store to let companies distribute mobile applications to their employees’ iPhones, iPads and Android devices. Ken successfully led the company through difficult market conditions and several rounds of venture financing.

Ken Singer

Head of entrepreneurship and tech center @ UC Berkeley

Yury Melnichek

Founding Investor @ Fabby

Yury Melnichek

Founding Investor @ Fabby

Yury Melnichek

Founding Investor @ Fabby

Rupert March

Rupert March

Started his IT career as a Cobol developer, working for 3M UK. He moved into sales with 3M and progressed into the specialist datacomms industry. In 2002, he progressed to Microsoft CEE HQ as the regional partner lead. Currently Rupert March is the Developer and Platform Evangelism Director for the Multi Country Region and also manages the regions Business Resource Group.

Rupert March

Al King

Global Brand Director @ WARGAMING.NET

Al King

Global Brand Director @ WARGAMING.NET

International marketing professional with extensive experience in games, online and home entertainment marketplaces gained in market leading organisations. Fully rounded Marketeer with knowledge of all areas of the discipline including digital. Have launched multiple chart topping titles in numerous markets. Very professional attitude. Natural and charismatic leader. Award winning innovator. MBA. BAFTA member. Outstanding contacts in entertainment, media & technology sectors. Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing.

Al King

Global Brand Director @ WARGAMING.NET

Gary Stewart

Director @ Wayra UK

Gary Stewart

Director @ Wayra UK

Director of Wayra UK (cohorts of 20 for-profit businesses in which Telefónica invests as a minority shareholder) and Wayra UnLtd. (cohorts of 10 social ventures in which Telefónica and the British Cabinet Office invest as minority shareholders)
* Former director of Wayra Spain, overseeing academies in both Barcelona and Madrid. Helped Spanish start-ups to raise more than $13 million (and counting) over the last 18 months.
* Redesigned and relaunched IE Business School’s accelerator for MBA students, and taught entrepreneurial management courses to MBAs.
* Proactive entrepreneur. Co-founder of nuroa.com, an Internet start-up based in Barcelona, Spain that has raised over €4 million in financing.
* Results oriented, highly creative, out-of-the-box strategic thinker with strong orientation toward understanding customer behaviors.
* Yale-trained lawyer with first-class experience in top global law firms. Specialized in mergers and acquisitions and securities law.

Gary Stewart

Director @ Wayra UK

Agenda

09:00

Registration

10:00

Welcoming Speech

Tania Marinich, Head and Founder of Belbiz Group of Companies

10:20

Keynote speech

10:50

Leveraging Artificial Intelligence to Transform the Future

11:20

Driving economic activity and innovation by building blockchain projects

11:50

Coffee Break

12:10

REAL LIFE STARTUP CASES: Insights from top world media tech experts

12:40

International Startup Stars from Belarus. Panel Discussion

13:00

Lunch - Networking

14:00

STARTUP JOURNEY FROM FIRST CUSTOMERS TO EXIT: How to Attract First Customer

Can Saracoglu, SpringVentures

14:30

Growth Hacking

15:00

Startup acquisitions by global brands

15:30

Coffee Break

15:50

Female vs. Male approach to VC moderated by Robin, tech.eu

16:40

Startup Competition

18:00

Startup Competition Award Ceremony

20:00

Afterparty at Imaguru

Only for participants of Venture Day Minsk. Entrance with VDM Badge Only

CEO & Founder @ Spacemind Capital

Oleg Gaidul

CEO & Founder @ Spacemind Capital

Anton Backman

Co-Founder @ Wave Ventures

Anton Backman

Co-Founder @ Wave Ventures

Anton Backman

Co-Founder @ Wave Ventures

Max Gurvits

Partner @ CCC Startups (BG)

Max Gurvits

Partner @ CCC Startups (BG)

Max Gurvits

Partner @ CCC Startups (BG)

Arvydas Bloze

CEO @ Startup.lt

Arvydas Bloze

CEO @ Startup.lt

Arvydas Bloze

CEO @ Startup.lt

Startup Competition

We invite ambitious startups with a global vision to take a stab at Venture Day`18 Minsk Competition which is to be held on May, 16 in Minsk. You will be challenged to pitch your startup in front of a panel of international mentors and investors.

The only requirement set by the organisers is that the applicants must have present a product which potentially will make a difference globally, with a traction by the competition date and looking for investments more than 0.5mln. You should also speak English. There are no thematic requirements: any startup can apply who believes that their idea might appeal to their target audience and attract investors. All applications are welcome!